The Ever-So-Famous Block for Writers

I know that there have been a bazillion posts about writer's block, but I find that none of them have been of particular help.

Or it might just be me.

Anywho, I think that we should start a list of things to remove the terrible block. for example, this is my suggestion for getting rid of it.

Take a long, hot, nice shower. Think about what you want to write, while standing there. It'll come to you. Most of my ideas come from standing in the shower

Any other tips? Please post them here! We (as writers) need to know how to rid of this formidable sickness.

C'mon, YWS!

It really depends what kind of blocks you are experiencing.


There is the not wanting to write, procrastination block, the "I have no ideas" block, and the "I can't write/the words won't come out" block. Finding the way to get over it isn't by doing what some else does, it is by learning how you work as a writer.

And sometimes, you just can't write. And that's that. I'll have to gather tips... I have a bunch I've learned from one book, hehe.

lol i come onto this site when i can't write. or i read. or i run. or i watch a movie. or i just glue my butt to the chair and force myself to write ANYWAY.

TOTALLY agree on the shower thing. Some very interesting dialogue and scenes have come to me when I've been in the shower. Which I find kind of strange but also awesome at the same time. XD Didn't happen to me tonight (I just got out of the shower a few minutes ago) but it's not something that happens to me all the time when I take a shower anyway...and I think I have to actually be thinking about writing, which I wasn't.

I have another tip:

Take a nap. Just a quick little short one - an hour or two. Try to think of the scene you are having trouble with and then your imagination will finish it in your sleep. It may not turn out the way that you want, but hey, you got your creative juices rolling!

BBB

I would agree with those suggestion BBB.

I don't know why though, but if I've just read 20 pages or so of LotR the night before, the words just flow out!

Another good one is to go for a long walk and think about what you want to write. Think about what inspires you.

~Azila~

I find inspiration in the wierdest places. I just a chicken curry for dinner. I looked down and saw that the chicken in the middle was surrounded by rice... Reminded me of a battle...

Another one, I was listening to Long Road to Ruin By the Foo Fighters, and the melody and lyrics matched almost perfect with the scene. I went for a walk, listenging to it. I was imagining Aedomir walking down on his own against like 1 million kalbarcs, then him running and jumping and stuff at the tune.



~D'Aedomir~

Films.

I'm a sucker for war/battle type films. Go figure. Some of the most outstanding dialogue and scenes have popped into my head during these periods.

In fact, when I had watched Pirates, the second version, my head was so full of ideas, I just had to sit down and write something. And it worked. I wrote an entire scene, accurately and vividly about the British Prison Ships used during the American Revolution. It was rediculous but truely amazing. I had read some this past year but you must know I've been into the period for a long stretch of time. It was like these bits of information that had fallen astray, sleeping, suddenly woken up, and fueled a pretty intense scene.

Reading usually is another key factor. Though these days I've been reading Fantasy, almost any good book I pick up, ideas, newly formed scenes, new characters, existing characters; everyone and everything collide into one, big explosion. It's marvelous. And for this reason, I almost never leave without paper and a pen to record. XD

Good luck... (By the way, my characters have ceased on chasing me through Boston's streets, threatning to hang this writer).

Films.

Yeah, I agree. I was watching the new King Kong last week, and many ideas just popped into my head. I mean, who wouldn't want to write about a bug jungle full of unseen stuff? O.o

Anyway, if you are having a hard time writing, watch a movie about what you are supposed to be writing.

For example, right now I am stuck trying to describe a torn down village. In my book, StoweAway, the bad guy's soldiers came and took many men to be slaves and destroyed East Bristol.

So, I'm stuck trying to describe a simple scene. I don't know why it's so hard.

So later tonight, I'll try and pick a movie that has some of the same features, and I hope thing'll flow into me!

Hopefully...

BBB

Something that often works for me (but presents its own brand of problems) is to write something else! It's not unusual for me to get stuck while writing in my novel, and sometimes it just helps to get away from that and scratch out a short scene or story about something totally unrelated (or, it often starts as totally unrelated and ends up being very helpful).

When I get writer's block, I fist come here. Then I go to the various forums and find something that isn't focused on writing. I read 1 sentence, then just think over all the instances when that one sentence could be used. Completely change the context of the sentence. Trust me, you'll find a greaat idea or two that way. You ccan also go to any other forum or just watch a movie or play video games. 1 line could give you a whole new idea.

VOMIT WRITE!

Vomit writing is writing anything that comes into your head. No matter how crap it is. Apart from its usefulness as a stress buster, you might find that some of what you write is quite good.

By the same token, don't force yourself to write. Take some time out. Watch TV. Play some music. Something that you see or hear could give you that flash of inspiration.

Hope this helps.

Gahks

If I can't write fiction, I just write in my journal. It's therapeutic and I can pretty much always get myself to do it, even if I'm just saying something like "I don't have much to write..." Because something will come to me and make me a liar.

Aboute the vomit writing.

You could also just write things like 'my thumb hurts, Why must i type such rideculous stuff?' (don't worry about the spelling, at the point, it simply doesn't matter.) then just keep on writing stuff like that. Eventually (this may take a day or two) your brain will see your dying of bordom and put something out there. Write it down, no matter how sucky it is.

Or you can think of the oddest situation (if you can't think of one then I'm sorry this will be no help) and see the oddest ways it could end.